Hussey worried by daughter’s vaccination

Staff Reporter

Published:13:42Monday 09 February 2015

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A unionist councillor whose daughter was one of 95 pupils administered a pre-school whooping cough injection that can cause more local reactions in teenagers said the revelation had been “extremely worrying.”

UUP Councillor Derek Hussey said: “It was with incredulity that we received a letter informing us, after the event, that there had been an incorrect vaccine administered to our daughter and you can imagine the concern that we, and indeed I imagine many other parents, felt at that moment.”

The Western Trust said the vaccinations were perfectly safe but stated: “The vaccine may have caused more local reactions such as redness, swelling or soreness and a high temperature within the first two to three days when given to this age group.”

Mr Hussey added: “On speaking to our daughter we know that she had experienced a degree of nausea at the time but that some others were impacted more so.

“Obviously, the Trust are investigating what has ‘gone wrong’ with their scrutiny systems and it is only right to await that examination but I sincerely hope that the Trust will be considering a monitoring of those affected to give assurance both to the students affected and to parents that there are no long term implications.”

He added: “Speaking solely as a parent, it is extremely worrying that this could have happened to young people in what I had always understood to be a strictly controlled environment.”